Athena: Goddess of War

Disappointing spin off of the ground breaking IRIS. South Korean security branch, NTS, squares off against international energy terrorist cabal. Poorly acted, wrong headed direction, and a script with more holes than a rat infested wheel of Swiss cheese. The main lead is too young, and early on grins and mugs as if auditioning for teen boy band. A team captain is inept and foolish, as is a North Korean ex-elite agent. Don't get me started on the bane of K-dramas. The tears. Weeping, crying, sobbing like six year olds. Yet these blubbering basket cases safeguard the nation.

There are exceptions, the chief being the Son Hyuk rogue baddie who excels.

The director obviously knows action sequences, which are showcases. With actors, he seems clueless. As much as I blame the series director for foolish comic relief and histrionics, however, the main culprit is the ridiculous script. Long, gorgeous episodes in Italy - for no purpose. Two episodes in Japan, guarding a pop star - for no purpose. Double agents exposed, and then the duped side shrugs and says, "Well, they're sorry, so back to work." Initially, the main villains are USA agencies, which is a wonderful twist, only that thread is abandoned.

An agent (Woo-sung Jung) is transferred to the National Anti-Terrorist Service and must stop a secret organization from committing acts of terror. This series (20 episodes, 60 minutes each) is a spin-off of the "Iris" series (with different actors) and is similar in terms of its budget, high production values, and slick presentation. The difference, however, is that the first few episodes set things up as a brainless, high octane action flick with generic scriptwriting, bland scoring, and weak characters. It severely lacks the dramatic intensity that made "Iris" so addictive, but the major positive here is the action, which provides some excellent shootouts that are on par with (or even better than) most theatrical films. It's amazing what they did with a mere $17 million. Soo Ae and Ji-ah Lee provide some exciting "girls with guns" action early on, but grow passive afterward, which is kinda disappointing. The pacing is blistering fast thru the first 10 episodes but runs out of gas during the second 10 episodes when the action becomes sparse and of a much lesser quality. It's almost like the director got lazy and phoned it in, because things actually get pretty damn boring at times. This would have been awesome if it had ended after episode 10.

Having watched both IRIS and Athena I felt compelled to write the review for the former mentioned show.

Athena has some good action scenes, however some of them feel a bit forced and overdone. How to put it more clearly and bluntly? Some of them feel too unrealistic and you have a feeling that it is too fictitious and not believable. Same thing was present in IRIS but in much less quantity.

Next minus is the suspense. Instead of a flowing story arc there are subplots which don't fit so well one after another. They are not so compact. The transition itself is good, but after it ends you feel like it had no big impact on the story as a whole (I am referring to episodes 3 to 5).

The last great flaw is the drama, which in the absence of better description from my part is not up to par (not satisfying enough), it lacks more storytelling and exploration. The kind that was done well in its sister show IRIS.

However there are some pleasant surprises in this show and the end does have closure, although the last 10 episodes are somewhat dragged out when it comes to storytelling.

All in all I found Athena as a good, solid show which lacks some pace, suspense and more deeper drama but it makes up for it in a good measure of action, acting and immersion into its world.

Plot-wise, Athena is a masterclass in espionage storytelling, full of high-stakes missions, political intrigue, and moral dilemmas. Yet the true genius-and tragic flaw-lies in the characters, particularly Son Hyuk.

Son Hyuk is not just a "villain." He is brilliant, calculating, strategic, and emotionally complex. He navigates the NTS world with the precision of a master tactician, yet underneath the cold exterior, glimpses of vulnerability and moral awareness shine through-most clearly in his relationship with Han Jae-hui. Their dynamic is electrifying: two intelligent minds, testing boundaries, trusting, challenging, and understanding one another in ways no other characters can.

The actor who portrayed Son Hyuk brought unmatched depth to the role. His performance conveyed intelligence, charisma, and quiet menace in equal measure. Every glance, pause, and controlled gesture reflected a mind constantly analyzing, always two steps ahead, yet capable of subtle human warmth. The portrayal made Son Hyuk's brilliance palpable, making his early demise all the more tragic.

Jae-hui, equally compelling, is intelligent, brave, morally upright, and central to Son Hyuk's story. Her courage and moral compass balance Son Hyuk's complexity, creating one of the most fascinating relationships in the series. However, the narrative often sidelines her depth, casting her in sacrificial or romanticized roles rather than fully exploring her agency and intelligence.

Then there is Jung Woo. A character whose conventional "good guy" traits-loyalty, dutifulness, and rigid morality-receive disproportionate narrative attention. His jealousy, insecurity, and control instincts are obvious, yet the story grants him the tidy, heroic ending, leaving Son Hyuk's brilliance and Jae-hui's sacrifices underexplored.

The series repeatedly sacrifices nuance for narrative convenience. Son Hyuk's potential as a layered protagonist is cut short by his premature death, diminishing the moral and emotional complexity the show builds so well. His intelligence, charisma, and subtle humanity could have driven multiple arcs, yet the plot favors the "safe" resolution, giving prominence to a less compelling character.

In short, Athena is thrilling, intense, and beautifully executed in action and suspense-but the real tragedy lies in wasted potential. The smartest, most fascinating characters are denied the endings they deserve. The show hints at profound moral ambiguity, emotional depth, and high-stakes complexity, yet chooses conventional safety over the brilliance of Son Hyuk and the layered heroism of Jae-hui.

The actor's performance remains a standout, making every moment of Son Hyuk compelling and memorable. His brilliance reminds the audience of what the series could have been-an intricate exploration of intelligence, loyalty, love, and betrayal-had it fully trusted its most fascinating characters.

Athena: Goddess of War is a Korean action melodrama show that was spun off from the hugely successful "Iris" series. This show basically ramps up the same action and intrigue found in "Iris", but, it does so at the expense of providing the central dramatic themes that made "Iris" the more interesting and addictive of the 2 shows.

SPOILERS AHEAD!

I did not like this show as near as much as its predecessor, but I did still enjoy watching it. It only very loosely follows the events that occurred in the "Iris" series, and you don't really need to watch that show first in order to watch this one. Although, there are a couple of crossover characters involved that might make you scratch your head for a couple of episodes as to who they are if you did not watch "Iris" first. These "Iris" characters just got in the way here for the most part, and they did not need to be incorporated (somewhat clumsily, I might add) into this show.

Frankly, this show would have been better off it if had distanced itself from being an "Iris" spin off in my opinion. It's not a bad stand alone action show on its own, that would have likely been much better thought of without all the inherent direct comparisons to some other show.

This show gets off to a blazing start action wise, and it doesn't waste any time letting you know what you're in for. In the intro, 2 teams of secret agents are pitted against each other as they battle over a nuclear scientist who defected. Once that's wrapped up, they flash forward a bit, where various new crises are implemented by the baddies over time, while the good guys try to stop them. That's basically it!

As with "Iris", there are a number of organizations and persons involved that are good, bad, gray, or undecided. They add a few more organizational & personal angles in this show though (which were mostly redundant); this is not confusing per se, but it only serves to unnecessarily try to complicate the plot with very little benefit to the overall story.

This show is by no means bad, particularly so if you're looking for an action series. There are a number of action scenes (several of which are quite impressive), and, the acting, production values, etc, are all above average. However, it lacks an underlying story with enough purpose to bring the entire production together to deem it a must watch show.; it ultimately just follows a continuing pattern of: intrigue plot scene, action set piece scene, romance plot scene, then repeat.

It's decent enough to recommend as it does more than enough quite well. The first 8 episodes or so were, indeed, highly entertaining. This show gets bogged down quite a bit once the primary plot kicks in though. There's plenty enough talent and money involved to make it all work, and there are only a very few episodes that are poorly written, directed, or produced. I think where it fails a bit is a result of what seems to have been rush to capitalize on "Iris". This show would have been much better served if the writers and story tellers were given some more time to think things through in advance, but that's the way it goes sometimes!

Bottom Line: Somewhere in the 6-8 star range. It's mostly watchable (even more so if you're just looking for some KTV action). I'm giving it 7 stars!